Elevator mounting for self-loading elevator scraper



Nov. 25, 1969 E. o. DUKE ETAL 3,479,754

ELEVATOR MOUNTING FOR SELF-LOADING ELEVATOR SCRAPER Filed June 29, 1966 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTORS EDWARD D. DUKE IVHZ YHERMIZ 75M ATTY 1969 E. D. DUKE ETAL 3,

ELEVATOR MOUNTING FOR SELF-LOADING ELEVATOR SCRAPER Filed June 29, 1966 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS EDWARD D. DUKE RAMIZ Y. HERIVIIZ NW. 25, 1969 E, D. DUKE 'ETAL 3,479,154

ELEVATOR MOUNTING FOR SELF-LOADING ELEVATOR SCRAPER Filed June 29. 1966 5 Sheets-Sheet Z A F/ 6. 7A

INVENTORS EDWARD D. DU KE RMIZ RAIVHZ Y HE United States Patent 0 US. Cl. 37-8 1 Claim ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE An elevator mechanism for a material scraper bowl having side walls, a bottom joining the side walls and a generally open forward end, comprising an elevator frame having upper and lower horizontal support members, material engaging means movably mounted on said elevator frame for assisting the entry and loading of material into the bowl; upper guide means afiixed to the bowl side walls for supporting said upper horizontal support member; a lower guide member attached to the bowl side walls for supporting said lower horizontal support member, said lower guide member defining a cam surface and having adjusting means for altering the disposition of said cam surface and means mounted at the ends of each of the upper and lower horizontal support members for cooperating with said upper guide means and lower guide member respectively to permit a pivotal and linear movement about said upper guide means and an arcuate movement in both a vertical and a horizontal direction about said lower guide member.

This invention relates to material handling scrapers and more particularly to an elevator mechanism for assisting the loading of material in a receptacle commonly referred to as a scraper bowl.

One type of earth moving scraper includes a front open ended bowl having a scraper blade at the forward end of the bowl and wheels at the rear end. The front end of the scraper bowl is connectable to a portion of a tractor which pulls the bowl through a supporting arm commonly referred to as a gooseneck. Suitable hydraulic cylinders are provided for lowering the forward end of the scraper bowl with respect to the tractor so that the blade engages the material beneath the bowl, be it earth, sand, or stone, and as the tractor pulls the scraper the blade forces the material up and into the bowl. After the loading is completed and the bowl is raised, the material is transported to another location for unloading.

To assist loading the material in the bowl there have been provided in the past various elevator mechanisms to assist the entry of the material into the bowl thereby expediting the loading operation and improving the efliciency of the scraper. One form of elevator mechanism commonly employed is an endless chain arrangement driven by sprockets with material engaging flanges supported on the chains. This elevator mechanism is positioned with one end adjacent but spaced from the scraper blade and with the other end of the elevator mechanism being positioned high in the scraper bowl, somewhat toward the rear of the bowl, to facilitate forming a maximum material pile in the bowl.

There exists at the present time numerous methods of supporting the elevator mechanism in the bowl. The majority of these methods employ complicated linkages to permit the elevator to go through the necessary motions "ice required for good loading performance. However a less complicated and more reliable mounting method for the elevator has been needed, and it is such a mounting applicants now disclose.

A primary object of this invention, is to provide a new, compact, rugged, simplified and economical method for supporting the elevator mechanism in a scraper bowl, that withstands conveniently the hard usage of big and small earth moving equipment.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a novel method of support that allows the initial position of the bottom end of the elevator to be located up and down and fore and aft relative to the cutting edge at the forward end of he scraper bowl.

Another object of this invention is to provide a novel method of support at the elevator top that permits the lower portion of the elevator to be guided in its motion along specific various paths as necessitated by the type of soil being loaded.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a method of support at the top that allows the bottom part of this elevator to move away from the cutting edge, thus increasing the opening in between the elevator and the cutting edge, whenever big rocks or other obstructions attempt to pass through the opening into the bowl.

A further object of the invention is to cushion the impact of these obstructions on the elevator components by the means of springs which also bias the elevator to its original position prior to the passage of the obstruction.

A more specific object of the present invention is to provide an operating method of support for an elevator mechanism serving as a top pivot located inside a slide that is guided within a channel fixed on the bowl side, along with a second pivot near the bottom end of the elevator which consists of a pin located inside a roller which rides on the contoured surface of a cam mounted on the scrapers side wall.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will he apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a top elevation of one side of a scraper,

FIG. 2 is a side elevation, with the forward part broken away, of an elevating scraper embodying the present invention,

FIGS. 3A-3C are side elevations showing the elevator frame in three operating positions,

FIGS. 4, 5 and 6 are enlarged views of the upper pivot, and

FIGS. 7A-7C illustrate the pattern of holes in the cam guide which govern the location and path of the elevators lower pivot and hence the opening between the elevator paddles and the cutting edge of the scraper bowl floor.

While FIGS. 1 through 7 show just one embodiment of the invention the description of which will follow, it is to be understood that the invention is capable of many modifications.

Changes, therefore, in the construction and arrangement may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claim.

Referring now to the drawings and particularly FIGS. 1 and 2, a scraper generally indicated by the numeral 10 is adapted to be connected to a gooseneck 12 carried by a tractor which pulls the scraper during the loading and transporting operations.

The gooseneck 12 has oppositely extending pivots 14 with rearwardly extending arms 15 pivotal on the pivots 14 at one end and pivoted to the opposite sides of the scraper as at 16. For raising and lowering the scraper .10 a hydraulic cylinder 20 is provided fixed to the scraper gooseneck 12 at one end and at the other end to the forward end of the scraper. Extension of the hydraulic cylinder and piston 20 lowers the forward end of the scraper for loading, and retraction of the hydraulic cylinder and piston raises the forward end of the scraper preparatory to transporting the material in the scraper to another location.

The scraper 10 includes frame members 22 carrying an axle 23 at the rear end thereof supporting conventional heavy ofi-the-road type tractor wheels 27. Mounted on the frame 22 is a bowl 24 for receiving material which bowl includes generally vertical, spaced side walls 25 and 26, and a bottom two-piece wall or floor 30A and 30B extending between the side walls from the rear of the bowl to the forward end thereof. Note that wall 25 and one of the arms are broken away in FIG. 2 to more clearly illustrate the elevator mechanism. Extending between the forward end of the walls 25 and 26 is a crossmember 32 for rigidly supporting the walls and the forward end of the scraper.

A scraper blade assembly 37 extends across and is fixed to the bottom wall 30B of the scraper bowl and serves to guide the material into the bowl during loading and lift the material up so that it flows into the bowl as the scraper is being pulled forward by the tractor.

To assist the entry of material into bowl 24, an elevator mechanism 40 is provided, shown in its loading position in FIGS. 1 and 2, and includes an endless chain type of material engaging means or flanges 42 which travel in a counterclockwise direction assisting the entry of material into the bowl 24 between the scraper blade 37 and the elevator mechanism 40. The elevator extends a substantial distance between the side walls 25 and 26.

An ejector plate assembly 44 is provided and extends between the side walls 25 and 26, shown in FIG. 2 in its retracted position. A suitable hydraulic cylinder operating mechanism (not shown) is provided for moving the sliding floor 30B rearward and moving the ejector plate 44 from its position shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 to a position adjacent the forward end of the bottom 30. To unload material from the bowl 24 the sliding floor 30B is pulled rearwardly, and the ejector plate 44 is reciprocated forwardly along the bottom, ejecting material from the forward open end of the bowl.

Turning now in more detail to a description of the elevator mechanism 40 along with its associated supports FIG. 1 shows the elevator mechanism 40 having spaced frame members 45 (only one shown) connected by a transverse frame member 46. It should be understood that only one-half of the scraper is shown in FIG. 1, and that the opposite side of the scraper is a mirror image of the view shown. Supported between the frame members 45 are spaced shafts 48 and 49 each of which carries a pair of sprockets 50 and 51 at the ends thereof, respectively. The sprockets 50 and 51 drive endless chains 53 which in turn carry and drive the material engaging means 42, shown only in schematic form in FIGS. 1 and 2 for clarity, and it should be understood that these material engaging means are of conventional design and include a plurality of horizontally extending plates arranged in an endless chain fashion to engage and carry the material entering the bowl over the scraper blade 37 up into the bowl.

Suitable means are provided for driving the sprockets 50 and 51 in a counterclockwise direction as shown in FIG. 2, which means includes a drive mechanism 55 for the elevator mechanism 40 (as shown in FIG. 1 at one side of the elevator mechanism).

Extending transversely from (one on each side) and rigidly connected to the top section of frame members 45 is a support member 56 terminating at each end with a pin 57 which is rotatable within a block or slide 58 which moves within U-shaped channel or guide 28 which is mounted on bowl side 25. As the elevator mechanism 40 moves upward, block 58 slides in channel 28. This upward movement is limited by a stop 58A which will contact the bottom of channel 28 when the maximum allowable upward movement has been traveled.

Extending transversely from (one on each side) and rigidly connected to the bottom section of frame members 45 is support member 52 terminating with a pin 54A on which is mounted roller 54 which is movable on a cam 59 mounted on side wall 25.

FIG. 7, view A, shows how the cam may be moved up or down using the same fixed tapped holes (64) in side wall 25 (as is well known in the art).

By utilizing another set of holes in cam 59 it may be moved horizontally as in view B, or rotated around one of the tapped pivot holes 64, as in view C, to effect a change in the slope of the cam surface on which the elevator roller 54 climbs during the loading operation.

The shallower the cam angle 67 is with horizontal reference line, the easier it is for the elevator roller to climb on the cam.

On the other hand, too shallow an angle might allow the elevator assembly 40 to remain too far from cutting edge 37 during the loading operation which allows the buildup of excessive quantities of broken up material in front of the cutting edge 37.

Thus the adjustable cam 59 allows flexibility of position to fit various types of soils and loading circumstances as well as allowing movement of the lower portion of the elevator frame in both a vertical and a horizontal (forward and backwards) direction simultaneously.

FIGS. 4, 5, and 6 illustrate details of the upper sliding pivot. If the lower parts of the elevator frame-while the scraper is in transportare met by a rigid obstruction, guide 28 on side wall 25 allows upper pivot 57 and its slide 58 to move linearly upwardly with the blow thus reducing its impact. This impact is also cushioned by the extension of a spring 60 mounted between the bowl 24 and the elevator frame 45. A stop 65 prevents the elevator roller 54 from falling off of cam 59. A similar stop member 58A attached to block 58 is used to prevent separation of the top pivot means.

FIG. 3 shows how extension spring 60 continuously acts to pull the elevator frame 45 downward in the direction of its original installation regardless of where cam 59 is located, or where on the cams surface roller 54 happens to be.

Thus it will be understood that we have provided an elevator mounting mechanism which satisfies all the objects as set out hereinabove and will provide the support of the elevator in a self-loading scraper which is necessary for proper earth-moving.

What is claimed is:

1. In an elevating material scraper having a bowl with side walls, a bottom joining the side walls and a generally opened forward end, the improvement comprising:

an easily mountable elevator frame having upper and lower horizontal support members; material engaging means movably mounted on said elevator frame for assisting the entry and loading of material into the bowl; upper guide means afiixed to the bowl side walls for supporting said upper horizontal support member comprising an unobstructed and upwardly open channel; lower guide means attached to the bowl side walls comprising a cam member defining an arcuate unobstructed, upwardly facing surface; support means mounted at the ends of the lower support member for cooperating with said lower guide means; and a block member rotatably mounted at the ends of the upper horizontal support member and slidably engageable with said channel member, said block member having a portion extending downwardly below the lower end of said chan- 5 6 nel member and said portion including a stop 3,191,322 6/1965 Johnson et a1. 37-8 member extending outwardly beyond the lower end 3,210,868 10/1965 Liess 378 of said channel member and engageable therewith 3,292,278 12/1966 Johnson 37-8 to prevent said block member from moving upwardly out of said channel member. 5 ROBERT E. PULFREY, Primary Examiner References Cited E. H. EICKHOLT, Assistant Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS CL 3,048,934 8/1962 Hancock 37-s 198117 

